Opting for a Loyalist

When Enrico Berlinguer died on June 11, Italy reacted with a nationwide outpouring of sorrow that carried the Italian Communist Party to its finest electoral hour: a first-place finish, ahead of the rival Christian Democrats in the voting for the European Parliament. Last week, as the party elders met to elect Berlinguer's successor as Secretary-General, they apparently saw wisdom in continuity: they chose Alessandro Natta, 66, a longtime Berlinguer loyalist.

Western Europe's biggest Communist party (1.7 million members) thus served notice that it would continue to hew to Berlinguer's "Eurocommunist" line, polishing its democratic image and keeping Moscow at arm's length. Natta has supported Berlinguer's advocacy of what is known as the "historic compromise," the idea of a coalition government between Communists and Christian Democrats. He is considered practical rather than creative, professorial rather than charismatic. In opting for Natta the party passed up a number of candidates with a popular following, each of whom would have given his own stamp to the party. For the moment, however, their colleagues seem in no mood to experiment.